Liverpool were humiliated at Old Trafford - now they're strong enough to take their revenge

Resurgence: Liverpool have not lost a game since their 3-0 defeat at Old Trafford last year (Image: Reuters)

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Liverpool play host to Manchester United on Sunday, three months after an embarrassing 3-0 defeat at Old Trafford that could have signalled the end of Brendan Rodgers’ Liverpool career. Instead it might just have been the turning point in it.

The humiliating loss saw Liverpool drop to 10th in the table, seven points above relegation, 18 points from the top and it came days after Rodgers had seen his side limp out of the Champions League with just one win from six.

They actually went five games unbeaten after that, two wins and three draws, and even managed clean sheets in two of the three league games, but at Old Trafford any hopes of a slow and steady return to form seemed to have been dashed.

Simon Mignolet had struggled for most of the season yet it was then, off the back of those two clean sheets, that Rodgers chose to drop him, drafting in sub keeper Brad Jones for his first league start in almost two years. He combined that decision with one to introduce a brand new system to his players.

Repeatedly over the course of the season Rodgers had complained about a lack of coaching time yet he chose a fixture of this magnitude, five days after a European fixture, to dump the variations on a 4-3-3 he had used throughout his time as Liverpool manager and to introduce something new – at least to his club – a 3-4-3.

Full-back Glen Johnson started as one of the three centre-backs – although he only lasted 26 minutes before being forced off with injury – and Liverpool started without any of their four recognised strikers, two of whom were injured.

By the time Liverpool trudged dejectedly off that pitch it looked like an experiment that had backfired spectacularly.

Liverpool have been on the wrong end of Manchester United hammerings in the past but this was far from a vintage Old Trafford side, even if it was third in the league at the time.

Tinkerer: Brendan Rodgers has made numerous changes to his team throughout the season (Image: Reuters / Rebecca Naden)

The Reds’ home game against Real Madrid was embarrassing enough, three down before half time with the Spanish side never once looking concerned, never once looking like they needed to break into a sweat to keep Liverpool at bay. But at least Real Madrid were a side most teams in Europe would – and did – struggle to beat.

It highlighted how far Liverpool had fallen in the space of nine months.

This time last year, almost to the day, Rodgers had led Liverpool to a St Patrick’s Day weekend victory that all but sealed Moyes’s fate. Good things come to those who wait and it felt like Liverpool had finally turned the tables on their old rivals after almost a quarter of a century of watching them pick up title after title whilst the Reds didn’t win a single one. Liverpool were second, 14 points above their old rivals, four points behind leaders Chelsea and looking to all the world as a side that might just be capable of winning that elusive Premier League title.

As it was, of course, Liverpool went another year without picking up that title but despite that late season disappointment had gone into this one with high levels of optimism. Back in August Rodgers told supporters : “There is no depression here, there hasn’t been a hangover. I wasn’t lying on a sun lounger on a beach over the summer crying and fretting over the fact that we lost the league.

Progress: Rodgers insisted nobody at the club has stood still since last season (Image: John Powell)

“There is only an excitement and a belief inside the club that we can challenge again for the title this time.

“Last season was a great step forward and now we must believe that we can go one better.”

It was belief that got Liverpool so close to the title in May 2014, but by mid December Liverpool were a side completely bereft of it.

Having lost Luis Suarez and invested very little of the income from the deal in replacement firepower, having also lost Daniel Sturridge to injury, Liverpool had been feeling sorry for themselves and had looked very sorry for half a season.

Rodgers seemed unable to cope with the two games per week schedule all Champions League sides need to cope with, constantly talking about the lack of coaching time. But at least now that wasn’t a problem, his side were out of the Champions League and there wouldn’t be any European football for a couple of months.

Liverpool went on a 10-match unbeaten run, which ended in the Capital One Cup away to Chelsea and only then in extra time. They haven’t lost a game in the league for three months – since that defeat at Old Trafford before Christmas.

Striker: In the absence of Daniel Sturridge, Raheem Sterling has been playing up front (Image: Reuters)

The player chosen to lead the Liverpool line that day, more accustomed to playing as a winger or in a supporting role, was the youngster Raheem Sterling. He was up against an in-form David de Gea who kept a clean sheet and Liverpool at bay but questions were being asked, again, as to why Liverpool had invested so little of their £120m summer spree on strikers and why they were now relying on a youngster being played out of position.

Speaking recently, Sterling himself summed up how bad everyone at the club felt after that defeat: “That day for me against United was massive. I had a few chances to win us the game and I missed them. I was devastated after.

“Everyone at this football club wanted to win that game. It was a real low. I went home and watched the clips over and over again, just to see what I could have done better. I said to myself the next time I get into that position that I should just stay calm.

“When the manager told me I was playing up front the next game against Bournemouth as well I was really focused. Luckily enough, I got two goals.”

League Cup: Liverpool players celebrate during their quarter-final against Bournemouth (Image: Getty)

That game against Bournemouth, in the Capital One Cup, couldn’t have come at a better time. A strong team played well and restored some of the confidence that had been lacking all season.

“Even in the defeat to United, the manager said that you could see our identity coming back,” Sterling said. “We started playing with a lot more authority than earlier in the season. We created a lot more chances. After such a disappointing day, it's always nice to hear those things.”

The Bournemouth game also signalled the end of Dejan Lovren’s run in the side. Liverpool’s most expensive ever defender got an injury that saw him replaced by Mamadou Sakho at half time. On Boxing Day Rodgers made another half time switch to his defence, this time bringing Emre Can on for Kolo Toure against Burnley.

Can was signed as a midfielder, but kept his place in the back three for the next game against Swansea, with Liverpool winning 4-1 and Rodgers pointing out afterwards: “Emre can play in a number of positions, I've seen him play centre-half at Bayer [Leverkusen] but he can play in midfield too. His versatility is a reason why we got him.”

Versatile: Signed as a midfielder, Emre Can has proven his worth in defence (Image: PA)

That back three – Can, Martin Skrtel, Sakho – became the manager’s first choice trio. Mignolet had his place back in the side following an injury to Jones and the Belgian keeper rediscovered his form and his confidence.

Liverpool were still in ninth, still 10 points behind Manchester United, still needing others to slip up if they were to get back into contention for the top four.

Others have slipped up and Liverpool haven’t wasted the opportunities that brings, slowly but surely working their way up the table. The gap is now just one point, a win on Sunday would see Rodgers leapfrog the side that kicked them when they were down in December. That is quite some comeback.

Many things have played a part in that comeback – including Steven Gerrard clarifying where his own futures lies and a collection of wonder goals – but the roots of the revival are in that whitewash at Old Trafford in December and the way Liverpool reacted to it. Last year’s attacking masterclass has made way for new-found defensive resilience and an unshakable confidence they can take whatever is thrown at them.

As Rocky Balboa said: “It ain't about how hard you hit. It's about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward, how much you can take and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done.”

Liverpool are off the floor, off the ropes, ready to take whatever Manchester United can throw at them and more than capable of landing a few powerful shots of their own, a far cry from December.